DIYALA, Iraq

Six Daesh terrorists were killed Monday in an airstrike carried out by Iraqi warplanes in the eastern Diyala province, according to a local police source.

Police Captain Habib al-Shimmar told Anadolu Agency that the strikes were “based on intelligence information regarding the location of several Daesh militants -- including a group leader -- near Diyala’s northern city of Khanaqin”.

According to al-Shimmar, Monday’s airstrike “completely destroyed” its target.

Recent months have seen frequent attacks by Daesh terrorists on security personnel stationed in Iraq’s northern and eastern provinces.

Last year, Iraqi officials declared that Daesh's military presence in the country had been all but destroyed following a three-year conflict with the army.

Nevertheless, the group appears to have maintained a limited presence in certain parts of the country, against which Iraqi security forces continue to carry out frequent operations.

Reporting by Hussein al-Amir; Writing by Mahmoud Barakat